Blake: Federer rates over Tiger as top athlete

[FitzRoy]

Do remember that Tiger has to beat all 100+ players to win a tournament (any player can get hot in a four day stretch), while Roger only needs to beat 7 or less players in a tournament.

I agree with this. I think a PGA tour tournament win is more impressive than an ATP tournament win.

 

[vicnan]

I think a good athlete is a combination of strong physical ability (strength, stamina, coordination, etc) and mental ability (mental toughness, learning ability, and adaptability).

Comparing Roger and Tiger to their peers, Tiger is head-and-shoulder above other golfers in his mental toughness, while Roger is head-and-shoulder above other tennis players in his skills. Tiger rarely loses focus, even when he is leading, Roger tends to relax too much when playing weak players or when ahead during a match (like the match with Blake).

Do remember that Tiger has to beat all 100+ players to win a tournament (any player can get hot in a four day stretch), while Roger only needs to beat 7 or less players in a tournament.

How many Match Play championships has Tiger won at the professional level? And why is his record not so great in the Ryder Cup?

Golf is man v course. If Tiger plays poorly and his opponent plays well, he is out. Tennis is man v man. Even if Roger is not playing well and his opponent is, Tennis affords Roger the chance to make his opponent play to Roger's strengths instead of his own strengths. In general, In match play, most of the top seeds do not make into the later rounds while in tennis, more of the top seeds come through. There is no equivalent to a stroke play Golf tournament in Tennis.

 

[newnuse]

Tiger did win them by so many strokes, but you have to also factor in the tremendous change in golf clubs and golf ball while the courses have remained pretty much the same.

And Bobby Jones remains the only golfer to win all 4 majors in a year (1930), the US Open, the British Open, the US Amateur and the British Amateur -- the last two were considered majors then (the Masters and the PGA didn't exist then).

Your point on the golf equipment changing is not valid mate. The new equipment is available to all the pros. If Tiger was the only one using the new equipment, that's a different story. The equipment is irrelevant. He won by 15 strokes. It's not in relation to Par for the golf course. He beat his closest competitor by 15 strokes.

Forgot about Bobby Jones. But you can't really compare it to holding all 4 professional majors today. 1930 was a long time ago.

Tiger is doing things I've never seen. I hope people appreciate the magnitude of his accomplishments.

 

[mucat]

Do remember that Tiger has to beat all 100+ players to win a tournament (any player can get hot in a four day stretch), while Roger only needs to beat 7 or less players in a tournament.

I guess Federer will have to play and beat the top 100 players in 4 days consecutively for him to equal Tiger Wood...

Since there are ( 24-8 )x4= 64hrs in 4days with 8hrs sleep everyday.

So, 64 hrs / 100 player= 0.64hr/pl = .64*60 = 38min/player

So for Federer to equal Tiger Wood, he will have to beat the top 100 players in at most 38mins each in 5 set match consecutively.

 

[35ft6]

..a golfer is an athelete?

Yeah, I don't know how I feel about it either. A sportsman? For sure. Athlete:

A person possessing the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility, and endurance, that are necessary for physical exercise or sports, especially those performed in competitive contexts.

I guess technically a golfer is an athlete by this definition since they acquire traits necessary for a sport played in competitive contexts. Strength, agility, and endurance, though? Nahhhhh.

 

[Steve Huff]

If you watch ESPN, the Sports Channel, you know that poker has become a sport. You may not realize it, but it takes a lot of coordinated strength to nod your head quietly and to play for money that's not your own.

 

[MaxT]

Can Federer run 20+ miles, swim 2+ miles, and cycle ~100 miles against the other best athletes in the same day ? These are the guys I really admire along with the cyclists who can race 100+ miles/day at 25+mph for approx 1 month (Tour de France). Tennis players are great athletes and need special skill sets but do not rank as the best athletes of any time IMO.

Lasting an unusually long time is only one aspect of it. Look at long distance runners, very unblanced, that is not most people would like to be like.

 

[ShooterMcMarco]

Heres an article by Scoop Jackson making the Tiger Woods / MJ / Federer comparisons:

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=jackson/060908

 

[West Coast Ace]

Jim Brown was probably the best athlete ever (in the US). Could have broken every record in pro football if he had wanted to - but walked away from the game very early. Played lacrosse almost as a hobby and was one of the best in the country. Jim Thorpe - hard to tell because blacks weren't able to compete - excelled in a number of sports too.

Golf is not a sport - it's 'competitive recreation'. The ball doesn't move, the 'opponent' is the course, and everyone has to be REAL quiet. Just because Tiger put on a little muscle doesn't mean he's an athlete or golf is a sport. He was raised with one thing in mind - hitting a golf ball. And bicycling, triathlons, etc.. are endurance sports so they don't really compare because it's a test to see if you body can withstand the work; a high level of coordination is not involved.

Blake should be commended for making an effort to shine some light on a guy that most of America does not know exists.

 

[35ft6]

^ I would say golf is undeniably a sport, just not an athletic event.

 

[lambielspins]

Golf is boring as heck, I would never consider any golfer the best athlete. Tiger Woods is one of the few golfers who even looks like an athlete at all, half of the guys are fatsos or old bald men. Even Phil Mickelson is a big blob of fat, and has won 3 majors in the last 3.5 years.

 

[obsessedtennisfandisorder]

Look, I don't mean to criticise Tiger Woods ,he's great, but I just cannot stand golf period....as a spectator sport I hate.

Their is 2 ways to look at it.

Golf fans will say Tiger took golf to another level.

But I think Woods emergence in 97-99 showed up golf for what it was(a bit harsh i know, but stay with me).

When a guy came along who had talent, worked hard was more interested in winning and loving his sport than family time or pure $$$, he thrashed them all.

Tennis has had loads of individuals like this...who have won nothing...a good example is Todd Martin.

Look I know Faldo,Norman, Nicklaus etc had ...been great golfers..but come on "athletes"..that's stretching it.

anyway, The best "athletes" are the triathletes I think.

 

[oberyn]

I also frequent a golf DB. Blake's remarks have caused quite a stir among golf fans. I think MTV should do a claymation Tiger Woods vs. James Blake "Celebrity Death Match."

Here's how that Celebrity Death Match would go, IMO:

Blake has the early edge. Using his speed he keeps swatting Tiger with his racquet, sending him from ring post to ring post. Thinking quickly, Tiger signals to his caddy, Steve Williams, who yells out that it's now the 5th set. Blake suddenly gets tight. He has to take a few moments to compose himself. Thinking quickly, Tiger grabs a Roger Federer mask and puts it on. Blake faints. Tiger discusses the situation with his caddy. His caddy hands him his driver. Tiger tests the wind and takes a few practice swings. He tests the wind again, and hands the driver back to his caddy. His caddy hands him a 1-iron. Tiger takes a few more practice swings, and then proceeds to beat Blake to death with it.

Tiger wins.